From April 2005 to April 2010 Hozumi Hasegawa (35-5, 15) was the star of Japanese boxing. He was the WBC Bantamweight champion, a pound-for-pound fighter and a man who oozed style and charisma. He wasn't quite the sensation that predecessor Joichiro Tatsuyoshi was, but he was still the star and the face of Japanese boxing. Since 2010 however things have been tough for the Hyogo man who has suffered 3 stoppage losses and has long looked like a fighter holding on to past glories.

This coming Friday we see Hasegawa back in the ring and looking to become a 3-weight world champion as he challenges WBC Super Bantamweight champion Hugo Ruiz (36-3, 32), a huge punching, aggressively minded fighter with a point to prove. He's defending his title for the first time, travelling to a country where he suffered a controversial loss and looking to add a huge name to his record, albeit a faded name.

At his best Hasegawa was a truly brilliant fighter. His record might not show it but he had venom in hands, as Veeraphol Sahaprom found out in their second bout, blistering hand speed and a lighting quick boxing brain. Hasegawa would do what so few can and draw a lead from an opponent, avoid it then counter with a flurry of hard shots.

Fight fans and opponents both seemed to think that Hasegawa was feather fisted but stoppages against the likes of Sahaprom and Vusi Malinga, who he stopped inside a round, showed that Hasegawa had power as well as speed. Sadly though as he got older he got slower and the split second timing that he had in his prime started to fade. As that timing faded his defense began to show cracks and he would go on to suffer stoppages to Fernando Montiel, Jhonny Gonzalez and Kiko Martinez. The loses to Montiel and Gonzalez weren't too painful but he was given a real battering by Martinez in what should really have been his final bout.

Aged 35 and with just 2 wins in the last 3 years ud wonder how Hasegawa has gotten a world title fight but it's clear he knows this will be his final chance.

Ruiz is much less distinguished than Hasegawa but at 29 he's in his prime, at 5'9” he's a huge Bantamweight and with an 82% KO rate he's a really dangerous fighter. It's fair to say he lacks in terms of notable wins, with his best victories coming against Julio Ceja, Yonfrez Parejo and Francisco Arce,but that is one of the very few criticisms that you can make of Ruiz.

The champion won his title back in February when he stopped Ceja in 51 seconds, avenging a 2015 defeat to his fellow Mexican. The defeat Ceja is one of only two losses that Ruiz has suffered in the last 8 years, with the other boxing a split decision in Japan to Koki Kameda, a decision that has left Ruiz wanting to prove a point on his return to Japan. Despite the loss to Kameda the visitor doesn't seem to be worried about the conditions in Japan and seemed to suggest that he wanted to return to defend his title in the country.

Although Ruiz is flawed, particularly in his defense, he is a very devastating and powerful fighter. He's the type of guy who hurts anyone when he lands cleanly and can't be taken lightly, as Ceja found out. He's heavy handed in both hands. Powerful, physically strong and well schooled. He's a little loopy with his shots but they have so much venom that fighters don't seem willing, or capable of, taking advantage.

Ruiz against a prime Hasegawa would have been a brilliant match up that we'd have looked forward too knowing that it could go either way. Against this Hasegawa however we can't see anything but a win for the Mexican who we suspect will be too big, too strong, too fresh,too heavy handed and too powerful for the Japanese veteran. Hasegawa might have his moments but we can't imagine him hearing the final bell here.